Autonomous cars are gaining popularity in techno industries by encouraging promises that will benefit people and the environment. Although autonomous vehicles are not operating in the market yet, it is important to learn what techno industries are doing to make these robotic cars safe for us; as passengers and as pedestrians.
On March 18, 2018, Elaine Herzberg, 49, died in Tempe, Arizona after she was hit by a self- driving Uber car (NBC News.) This incident leaves us with some questions like:
Would those autonomous vehicles be safe for us? If so, how would people benefit from autonomous cars?
It is difficult to say that autonomous cars are going to be one-hundred percentage road safe. However, some companies like Waymo are investing millions of dollars to test their autonomous cars to prevent accidents like Herzberg’s. For example, in 2018 Waymo became the first techno company that drove 10 million miles with it’s vehicle on a public road (Stewart, 2019). This test demonstrates that Waymo autonomous cars have some degree of reliable safety. Needless to say that this test measure does not guarantee us a totally safe road, but experts in the techno industry are optimistic that this innovation will develop in a way that will bring a better future to people.
Some experts in the technology companies are predicting that those autonomous cars will prevent more deaths on the roads, and benefit people in other ways. Just imagine to live in a world where you can take a nap or to answer an email to your boss while your car is doing the driving for you! This sound fantastic, don’t you think? In the future these ideas will have some degree of reality because its what automakers are trying to develop to make this innovation to come true… But now let’s get back to our reality, it is important to mention that distractions like falling asleep or using your phone while driving are just a few of many human distractions that we face every day on roads. As a driver, I can say that it is easier to get distracted, or not to be alert when other drivers are not hundred percent committed to the steering wheel; this is not just my opinion. It has been proven that many of deaths in the USA are due to car accidents because of human distractions. It is believed that 94 percent of all traffic crashes in the US are caused by human error (ScienceDaily, 2018). For this reason, automakers are trying to develop this autonomous innovation to make people’s lives easier and safer. In the future these autonomous cars are predicting to be four to five times safer, meaning they should be able to reduce 75-80 percent of current traffic fatalities (ScienceDaily, 2018).
I believe this innovation will have a positive outcome in society, but it will take more years to be completely developed. But it never hurts to learn about innovations that is promise a stronger future.
List of References:
- Business, “Uber in fatal crash had safety flaws say US investigators,” BBC News, November 6, 2019. (https://www.bbc.com/news/business-50312340).
- Science News, “Self- driving cars must reduce traffic fatalities by at least 75 percent to stay on the roads,” ScienceDaily, May 30, 2018. (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180530132959.htm).
- Stewart, Emily. “Self- driving cars have t be safer than regular cars. The question is how much.” Vox, May 17, 2019. (https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/5/17/18564501/self-driving-car-morals-safety-tesla-waymo).
- Waymo, “Waymo 360® Experience: A Fully Self- Driving Journey,” Feb 28, 2018. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8R148hFxPw&t=27s).
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